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Anna Pham

Hadrian Rezai

Period #2

5-1-2003

Honors Biology

The Effects and the Treatment of Anemia

            Anemia is a nutritional disease in which the victim of it suffers from an essential part of the blood called hemoglobin. One of the essential nutrients needed in hemoglobin is iron, which is a pure material and has a periodic number of 26, and the symbol of Fe. The loss in this nutrient affects the body because, without this essential part of the blood, less blood is made, so less blood can be used for things like breathing, exercising, and digestion. Though anemia might sound very serious in any type of example, the actual suffering of the victim ranges from almost nothing to life threatening. On one hand, the victim might not even realize that they suffer from anemia, and just and increase in their iron intake will cure them. But then there are those who become bed-ridden and die because the iron just won’t be absorbed into the blood. The more serious types of anemia are sometimes called Sickle Cell Anemia, in which the blood cells start to collapse upon themselves and start to resemble sickles or scythes. Going back to the lesser effects on anemia, its can just be cured by increasing the intake of iron in such things as meat and certain vegetables. Also, a victim might decide to start taking a supplement, in which a nutrient, or many nutrients, are singled out and made into a single pill, that one would just have to take once a day, and they wouldn’t have to worry about their anemia at all.

 

Iron is one of the minerals that manufacture the hemoglobin. It is a source of transportation of oxygen that goes into our blood that goes into our body cells.  It helps to toughens up the immune system. Iron would help strengthen your muscles and aid you in becoming a physically stronger person. Most of the time is helpful to consume iron in the case of the athlete, who would need a good amount of iron to stay focused in their game.

 

The foods that contain iron are not delicious but are important to consume. Proteins can be found in dark green leafy vegetables, nuts and seeds sea vegetables, dried fruits etc…

 

But similar to everything that one consumes, there is a harmful side to iron. Too much iron can be accumulated and might catalyze the formation of free radicals, and this can cause the person to have a higher risk of cancer and heart disease.

 

So how do we know how much to take so that we can stay strong and healthy without having an overdose that could kill us? Well, people have tested again and again and now have the answer. For a child ranging from 4 to 10 years old should only be taking about 10 mg of iron. For males ranging from 15-18, the intake should be about 12 or 18 mg. Men older then that should be consuming foods around 10 mg of protein. Women ranging from 15 to 50 years old should only be taking 15 to 18 mg. Women over that age range should be only taking 10 mg of protein. 

 

There are also other sources of iron throughout the world that can fulfill a person’s need for iron. In addition to dark green leafy vegetables, nuts and seeds sea vegetables, dried fruits; a person could eat a variety of meats. For example, a person could eat beef, poultry, sardines, and oysters.

Bibliography

http://www.vegetarian-society.org/vit&min.htm

Made by the Vegetarian Society in Singapore

http://www.talonsvcs.com/vitamins/quicklist.htm

Made by Talon Nutritional Supplements

http://www.anyvitamins.com/rda.htm

Made by Zest for Life tm

http://www.chemo-sabi.com/Glossary/HGB.htm

Made by chemo-sabi.com

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000527.htm

Made by Medline Plus, Health Information